Disqualified Vinesh Phogat assures to give her 200% in Istanbul

Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia): In an embarrassment for India, ace female wrestler Vinesh Phogat was on Saturday disqualified from the 1st World Olympic Qualifying event for being overweight on a day when other women grapplers also failed to book Rio Games berth.

Vinesh Phogat

“Vinesh was overweight by 400 gms, so she was disqualified from the competition,” a top official in the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) told PTI. India lost out on a chance to ensure an Olympic berth in 48kg and are now left with just one more opportunity to book a ticket to the Rio Games at the last Olympic qualifier — 2nd World Qualification tourney — scheduled to be held at Istanbul from May 6-8. The official said a stern warning has been issued to the 21-year-old wrestler and her coaches.

“Vinesh has assured us that she would give her 200 per cent in Istanbul and make sure that she qualifies for the Olympics. But if she fails there as well, she would be issued a show-cause notice,” said the official.